Grand Jury Hears Testimony In Jail Death

November 21, 1985|By Katie Springer, Staff Writer

FORT LAUDERDALE — More than a dozen people testified Wednesday before a grand jury that is probing the case of Kathryn Ann Entress, who died in September at the Broward County Jail after an asthma attack.

The witness list included nurses, sheriff`s deputies and inmates who were nearby when the 37-year-old Miramar woman was found sprawled in her fifth- floor cell, according to Dave Casey, spokesman for the State Attorney`s Office.

Testimony continues at 9 a.m. today and is expected to be completed later in the day. The grand jury then will decide whether charges should be brought in the case.

Entress was found dead in her cell in the early morning hours of Sept. 29 after she suffered a severe asthma attack. A county medical examiner later said that she should have been able to control her attacks with a non- prescription inhaler, which was taken from her when she was booked into the jail.

The diminutive woman, who lived alone in a trailer park, was jailed after she failed to appear in court on a charge of tampering with her water meter. She ended up in jail because she was unable to post $250 bail.

Two deputies were suspended indefinitely without pay after an investigation by the Sheriff`s Office. Velvet Harris, 23, of Dania and Cheryl MacKenzie, 21, of Fort Lauderdale were suspended for not following departmental procedures after the woman`s body was discovered.

The two officers were the first to find Entress, but the investigation revealed that they waited more than an hour before calling paramedics to the cell.

After reviewing the sheriff`s report, the State Attorney`s Office decided to take the case to a grand jury.